We had banana leaves left over from the Steamed Salmon recipe, and I happened to stumble across this tasty-looking pork dish a couple of days before a PEPS potluck, so it was a no-brainer to make it our contribution.  I’m still partial to the Carnitas that we’ve made a few times previously, but this recipe is easier, and actually tasted better the next day as leftovers.

I love finds like this, that come out of trying to use up something we bought for a different recipe — banana leaves!

Lisa says:

I love recipes that list 20 cloves of garlic in the ingredients list.

Chris says:

That too — between the garlic, citrus, and achiote paste, the pork has a pretty distinctive flavor. I really like it, it’s different.

Lisa says:

You’re right, it’s different and it’s delicious — so what’s the deal with the ‘real’ recipe?

Chris says:

Oh, so traditionally you’re supposed to roast a whole suckling pig in a hole in the ground.

Lisa says:

(…)

Chris says:

Yeah, I thought you’d be fine with pork shoulder.

Cochinita Pibil
1 3.5-oz package of El Yucateco Achiote Red Paste
20 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 cup of freshly-squeezed lime juice
1/2 cup of freshly-squeezed orange juice
5-6 lbs boneless pork butt
1 package of banana leaves, defrosted

Combine the achiote paste, garlic, lime juice, and lemon juice in a blender, and puree until smooth. Cut pork into large square portions, leaving much of the fat (you can always remove any fatty pieces after it’s cooked) cover with the paste mixture, and marinate in refrigerator overnight, 12-24 hours.
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Line a roasting pan with overlapping banana leaves, letting them hang over the sides. Put the pork and marinade inside, wrap the leaves over the top, then top more overlapping leaves on top to create a sealed package. You should also then line the roasting pan with foil to prevent steam from escaping.
Cook 3.5-4 hours, until pork shreds easily with a fork.
Serve in tacos with pickled onions (recipe here), guacamole, and a *very* spicy hot sauce.

8 Servings

This last side-dish from our Thanksgiving in May roundup comes from Ellie Krieger, who often features lower-fat versions of classic recipes.  Since we had about two gallons of butter in our stuffing, it was nice to pretend that we were having a light meal with the addition of this Sweet Potato and Pecan Casserole.  The pecan topping was delicious and crunch-tastic.

Well, it’s over, this Thanksgiving of ours… 

Lisa says:

Noooo, it can’t be! 

Chris says:

Don’t worry, it’ll live on in leftovers and blog posts. 

Lisa says:

Blog posts? Yeah, right… with the kid coming, we won’t have time for that. 

Chris says:

Don’t you see? It’s perfect! We probably won’t get to posting it until late spring, or even summer! Then we’ll be able to look back upon these dishes and salivate all over again! 

Lisa says:

Oh, so like instead of “Christmas in July”, we’ll have “Thanksgiving in May”? 

Chris says:

Exactly. 

Sweet Potato-Pecan Casserole
3 1/2 lbs sweet potatoes (about 5 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1/3 cup honey
1 large egg
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
salt
1 tbsp packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Mist an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a pot with a large steamer basket in place. Put the sweet potatoes in the basket, cover and steam until tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and let cool slightly. Add the honey, egg, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, the nutmeg, ginger and 1/2 teaspoon salt; whip with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread the sweet potato mixture in the prepared baking dish.

Mix the brown sugar, pecans and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a bowl; sprinkle over the potatoes. Bake until hot and beginning to brown around the edges, 40 to 45 minutes.

Eat.

8 Servings

Welcome back to Thanksgiving in May! This is the most buttery, herby, shroomy, deeeelish stuffing we’ve enjoyed in a long time. I went searching for a new stuffing recipe and when I stumbled upon this one at food52 I knew I found our winner. The most difficult part of this recipe was tracking down a loaf of challah in the days leading up to the holiday.

Oh my god, I forgot about this one. 

Chris says:

Not me — I loved how buttery it was, and the texture was awesome — almost like a bread pudding. 

Lisa says:

Yeah! Crisped on top and soft inside, SO GOOD. 

Chris says:

Holla back, challah bread! 

Lisa says:

Unnecessary. 

Chris says:

Oh I don’t think so. 

Challah, Herb and Mushroom Stuffing
1 large loaf of challah
2 cups celery, diced
2 cups onion, diced
2 cups cremini mushroom, diced
8-10 sprigs thyme, chopped
1/4 c chopped flat leaf parsley
3 cups vegetable stock
4 oz melted butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish and parchment
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground

Cut the challah into 1″ cubes. Leave the cubes out on a parchment lined sheet pan, on the counter, to get stale, at least overnight and preferably 3 days.

Melt 3 oz of butter in a large heavy pan. Saute the onions until wilted, add the herbs, celery and mushrooms and cook until just slightly cooked thorough.

In a large bowl, combine bread cubes, vegetables, melted butter and vegetable stock, and salt and pepper. Test for seasoning and adjust.

Press stuffing into a large buttered baking dish. Cover with buttered parchment and then foil. At this point, the stuffing can be held for several hours, but should be at room temperature before baking.

Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes, the last 10-15 minutes without the foil and parchment, to crisp the surface.

Devour and collapse into a butter-coma.

We’ve discovered that having a newborn really cramps your keeping-up-with-a-food-blog style (shocking, no?) — but we’re back with our first recipe in 2011, a delicious Green Chicken Posole, from the book Sunday Soup: A Year’s Worth of Mouth-Watering, Easy-to-Make Recipes. This posole is of the green variety, and the broth is chock-full of tomatillos, cilantro, and oregano. Yum!

Whoa, are we really back? I thought WHF might go the way of our hiking site…

Chris says:

Hey, don’t say that! Besides, we’ll be doing hikes again this summer. And it’s not like we haven’t been eating, or trying new recipes…

Lisa says:

I know, I know… time..

Cason says:

Glar-lar-lar… burble..

Chris says:

Uh-oh, let’s get through this quick.

Lisa says:

Oooh, yeah — okay, well, you know I love posole, and this one might be one of my new favorites.

Chris says:

Yeah, mine too! I love the tomatillo-broth base.

Lisa says:

It’s a bit spicy, but not overwhelming. Just right.

Chris says:

I tamed it a bit by not including most of the seeds from the jalapeño. It –

Cason says:

*Spit-up*

Lisa says:

Uhhh, can you grab a towel? And can we be done?

Chris says:

Yeah, we’re done — hey, people, it’s easy and delicious!

Mama Veli’s Posole
4 cups chicken stock
12 oz boneless chicken breast halves
12 oz tomatillos
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup cilantro
6 large garlic cloves, peeled
1 large jalapeño pepper, most of the seeds removed
1 30 oz can hominy, white or yellow
1/2 tsp dried oregano
Salt

Garnishes:
Sliced radishes, cubed avocado, shredded cabbage, cilantro, chopped onion, and limes

Bring the chicken stock to a boil in a large pot with a lid. Add the chicken breasts, cover, and simmer until cooked through, about 14 minutes. When done, remove the chicken, shred with two forks, and place aside. Measure out three cups of the cooking liquid and set aside.
Remove the husks from the tomatillos, then rinse and chop. Add to a bowl along with the onion, cilantro, garlic, and jalapeño. In a food processor, add half this mixture, along with 1/2 cup of water, and puree until chunky. Do the same with the remaining half.
Pour the tomatillo mixture into a dutch oven. Add the 3 cups of reserved cooking liquid, the shredded chicken, hominy, and oregano. Bring it to a simmer and cook until just heated through. Season with salt.
Ladle into bowls and serve with garnishes!

6 Servings

This recipe is an adaptation of an all-veggie version in Super Natural Cooking. We wanted to bump up the protein so we added shrimp; we also cut the amount rice in half to make the toppings-to-base ratio more to our liking. The dish has the ingredients and taste of a sushi roll, without the need for a bamboo rolling mat.

Wahoo! This does taste like a sushi roll when you get a little bit of everything in one mouthful.

Chris says:

Totally — and I like the citrusy rice seasoning. It’s obvioulsy a bit stronger than what you’d find in your usual sushi roll, but adds just a bit of sweet and tart.

Lisa says:

I’d order this in a restaurant.

Chris says:

Well if we were in a sushi restaurant, I’d be ordering … sushi.

Lisa says:

Smartass.

Chris says:

Just sayin’.

Lisa says:

Well I’m just sayin’ I love this dinner.

Sushi Bowl with Grilled Shrimp, Tofu, and Avocado
1 cup brown rice (short-grain, if on hand)
1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 lb shrimp
6 oz extra-firm tofu
zest and juice of 1 orange
zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp cane sugar
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 4″ squares of toasted nori, chopped coarsely
2 green onions, choped
1 avocado, peeled and sliced into thin wedges
toasted sesame seeds

Rinse and drain the rice, then combine the rice, water, and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover, and simmer for about 45 minutes, or until all the water is absorbed.
Meanwhile, clean and peel the shrimp, then grill or saute until opaque and cooked through. Set aside.
Drain the tofu and pat dry. Cut the tofu into 1/2″ wide slices. Cook two at a time in a dry nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for a few minutes until browned. Flip, then continue cooking until browned on the other side and firm. Remove and set aside. When cool, cut crosswise into matchsticks.
To make the dressing for the rice, combine the orange juice, lemon juice, and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a slow boil. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add the soy sauce and vinegar. Return to a boil and cook for another minute or so until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon and orange zests.
When the rice is done, stir in 3 tbsp of the dressing and add more to taste. Divide the rice into separate bowls and top with the nori, green onions, tofu, avocado, and shrimp. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

2-3 Servings